Former Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar has picked his opener between Shubman Gill and Shikhar Dhawan alongside Rohit Sharma for World Cup 2023. The batting great backed the left-hander to be at the top along skipper as he feels that a left-right combination will be preferred and experience of Dhawan will be handy as well.
Shikhar brings that left-handedness plus loads of experience that he has got – Sunil Gavaskar
Ever since Shubman Gill has been in the ODI setup, he has been in top-notch form. The right-hander has set to stage on fire ever since he opened the innings for India in the 50-over format. The Punjab batter has been performing consistently and has been giving his team a fiery start.
Gill had the highest average by an Indian batter in ODI in 2022 with 72.5. Overall in 14 innings, he has 674 runs at an average of 61.27 and 100.45 strike rate to go with 4 fifties and 1 century. With the way he’s batting, it’s fair to say that he has sealed the opening spot in the side alongside Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan.
On the other hand, Dhawan has been the regular opener for India in ODIs. The southpaw has been one of the finest to have opened for India in the 50-over format. But of late he has come under the scanner for his strike rate and low scores. With Gill scoring consistently, pressure will be on Dhawan to score runs.
Shubman Gill in ODIs:
– 9 (21).
– 7 (11).
– 33 (39).
– 64 (53).
– 43 (49).
– 98* (98).
– 82* (72).
– 33 (34).
– 130 (97).
– 3 (7).
– 28 (26).
– 49 (57).
– 50 (65).
– 45* (42).Advertisement– 674 runs at an average of 61.27 and 100.45 Strike Rate in just 14 innings. pic.twitter.com/Ke6g69kkCT
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) November 27, 2022
The debate for the second opener alongside Rohit Sharma in the team has also ignited with both Gill and Dhawan in contention. Sunil Gavaskar also gave his take on the same. Speaking to Sony Sports, he choose Dhawan over youngster and said:
“You are always looking for a left-right combination. Shikhar brings that left-handedness plus loads of experience that he has got. I think he has a point or two to prove in the sense that he probably might be saying that with the kind of record that he has in T20 cricket he should be playing that as well. So I think it will be a great opportunity with these matches to show that he belongs to this squad and not just when the regulars are away.”
“He has got to convert those 50s and 60s into impact hundreds and 120,” Sunil Gavaskar on Shubman Gill
While hailing Gill as a rare talent, Gavaskar pointed out that to make himself a regular in the playing XI, the youngsters should convert his 50s and 60s into impact hundreds and 120. He said:
“This means that someone like Shubman Gill will have to scored hundreds and hundreds. Not the 50s and 60s that he is getting. He is a terrific talent, make no mistake. He is a rare talent. But he is not doing justice to his talent by getting out in the 50s or 60s. Yes sometimes I understand that you are kind of trying to up the scoring rate but he has got to convert those 50s and 60s into impact hundreds and 120. Those knocks make a difference to the result.”
The average of Shubman Gill as an ODI opener is 70.71 from 10 innings.
— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) November 29, 2022
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